WP: Safety Violations Have Piled Up at Coal Mine

[kskiska]

Time and again over the past four years, federal mining inspectors documented the same litany of problems at central West Virginia's Sago Mine: mine roofs that tended to collapse without warning. Faulty or inadequate tunnel supports. A dangerous buildup of flammable coal dust.

Yesterday, the mine's safety record came into sharp focus as officials searched for explanations to Monday's underground explosion. That record, as reflected in dozens of federal inspection reports, shows a succession of operators struggling to overcome serious, long-standing safety problems, some of which could be part of the investigation into the cause of the explosion that trapped 13 miners.

In the past two years, the mine was cited 273 times for safety violations, of which about a third were classified as "significant and substantial," according to documents compiled by the Labor Department's Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA). Many were for problems that could contribute to accidental explosions or the collapse of mine tunnels, records show.

In addition, 16 violations logged in the past eight months were listed as "unwarrantable failures," a designation reserved for serious safety infractions for which the operator had either already been warned, or which showed "indifference or extreme lack of care," said Tony Oppegard, a former counsel to MSHA.

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http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/03/AR2006010301433.html

[chookie]

1. This makes me angry

There were also cuts in spending on mine safety, because Republicans are running the country. It's more profitable for them not to follow safety laws and to pay reparations for injuries and death.

Once again America is in agony, and will pull out the teddy bears and yellow ribbons for these destroyed lives, and NOTHING will be changed.

[Ilsa]

2. Hell, there is probably some liability limit for pain and suffering

so they won't "discourage mining operations". God forbid they have to consider actually having to pay for someone's life as they do their risk/return analyses.

[hughee99]

3. I don't see this as a "repukes running the country" issue

so much as it is a corporate issue. The mine was cited, A LOT, by the government. Mine safety is the responsibility of the company running the mine. Mine inspections (which seem to have been done) is the responsibility of the government. As much as I don't mind pointing a finger at the assholes in public offices, I think this one is the fault of the assholes in corporate offices.

[brer cat]

5. I agree, but what good is an inspection without enforcement??n/t

[peacetalksforall]

4. I was listening to a little bit of MSNBC. I heard someone on the Rita

show say that the previous owners had many violation stacked up against them, but the new (one month) owners seemd more concerned and had started working on some of the problems. The Joe show then starts and the guest is Rita and they are berating the owners of the mine with no distinction made between old and new and no mention of new owners.